Draft:The Double Archetype

NOTE: PLEASE CHANGE TITLE OF THIS PROPOSED WIKIPEDIA PAGE TO: The Double Archetype as Soul Figure

The concept of “the double” in psychoanalysis was first written about by Otto Rank in 1914. The Double was later utilized by psychologist Mitchell L. Walker to refer to the archetypal configuration of a same-sex soul figure, first introduced in the Jungian journal Spring in 1976. In his article, Walker proposed that the Double is “a soul-figure with all the erotic and spiritual significances attached to Anima/us, but of the same sex, and yet not a Shadow.” The Double is considered to be central to one’s ego identity as male or female and, when coupled with one’s Anima/us forms a complementary whole that is androgynous, since, for a man “…the Anima contains the archetypal images of mother, daughter, sister, lover. The male Double, then, contains those of father, son, brother, lover.” Anima/us and the Double are “…equal in all process mechanisms. Psychically, then, both can serve as ‘soul guides.’ Both can be seen in literature, mythology, etc., and are revealed thereby as involved in the process of individuation,” as both “…can be part of what Jung terms the transcendent function.” Similar to all archetypes, the Double is innate in the collective unconscious of all individuals, regardless of their sexual orientation; though within a homosexual person the Double is naturally charged with homosexual Eros, transforming its function into that of the soul figure, rather than the Anima or Animus, for a same-sex loving individual. Conversely, the Double could “embody the spirit of love” between heterosexually-oriented individuals of the same sex, without making that love “genitally involved.”

Historical Background
Carl Jung, the Swiss psychiatrist, researcher, and founder of Analytical Psychology, discovered that the individual psyche is not just a product of personal experience. Rather, it also has a pre-personal or transpersonal dimension that he named the collective unconscious, in which exists archaic and universal patterns of thoughts, behaviors, personalities, and images that he found played a role in influencing human behavior and which he referred to as Archetypes. These innate patterns are thought to be the basis of many of the common themes and symbols that appear in stories, myths, religions, and dreams across different cultures and societies and time periods. Jung wrote about a soul psychology in which the soul figure for males was feminine and which he named Anima, and the soul figure for females was masculine and named Animus; what is called “romantic love” occurs when these soul figures are projected onto the opposite sex beloved. However, Jung never wrote about a soul psychology for homosexual persons. The inclusion of the archetype of The Double as soul figure aims to remedy this situation for same-sex loving persons.

Qualities and Aspects of The Double Found in Mythology and Literature
The Double is described as having the following characteristics: “a soul-mate of intense warmth and closeness,” “a powerful helper, full of magic to aid in an individual's struggles,” “one's deeper support, one's partner, leading on, helping,” the “spirit of loving twinship,” “fuses the fate of two into one,” “a special, erotic, twin ‘brother’ who is felt to be the alluringly personified ‘source of inspiration,’” “facilitates rapport” and “pleasurable camaraderie,” “creates an atmosphere between friends of profound equality and deep familiarity, a mysterious, joyful sharing of feelings and needs, a dynamic, intuitive understanding.” Utilizing the ancient Sumerian myth, The Epic of Gilgamesh, Walker illustrated some of the qualities and functions of the Double, while distinguishing it from Shadow and from a Self figure. This tale shares about the adventures of Gilgamesh, the king of Uruk, of his meeting his Double in the form of Enkidu, his “soul-mate of intense warmth and closeness,” of the love that developed between them, “like that of woman,” the great positive impact that love had on Gilgamesh, such as how his “special, erotic, twin ‘brother’” was his “personified ‘source of inspiration.’” Enkidu is described as the “complementary mirror of Gilgamesh's masculine beauty, strength and wisdom”, and that he “brings out the best in Gilgamesh,” inspiring him to embark on great adventures.

In The Iliad, it is not until Patroclus, Achilles’ “soul-mate of intense warmth and closeness,” is killed by Hector that Achilles finally takes up arms for the Greeks against the Trojans. In the Bible, it is Saul’s love for Jonathan that stops Saul from killing David: “my brother Jonathan: very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of woman.” (II Samuel 1:26) In Tolkien’s Return of The King, the Double “fuses the fate of two into one,” when Frodo is joined in a “spirit of loving twinship” by his “deeper support” and “helping partner,” his loyal and loving servant, Sam, with whom he develops an atmosphere of “profound equality and deep familiarity” while on his dangerous quest to Mount Doom. In Robinson Crusoe, the Double/companion, Friday, served as “a powerful helper, full of magic to aid in the hero's struggles” against the cannibals. In Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck and Jim, the black slave, see their “spirit of loving twinship” fostered as their fates are fused together towards freedom on the great river. In The Prince and the Pauper, the story is about two identical boys and how their “loving twinship” intertwines their fates.

The Variation of The Youth-Adult
The Double is not always of the same age, experience, or maturity as the individual. Walker referred to such instances as the “youth-adult” variation of the Double, or as “archetypal partners.” In such cases the mature adult may serve as a mentor, teacher, or initiator of the youth. Examples of the youth-adult configuration can be seen historically, as in Ancient Greece, where it was referred to as “paederastia”; in films, such as Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi from Star Wars; and in literature, such as Frodo and Gandalf in Tolkien’s Fellowship of The Ring.

Dark Aspects of The Double
All archetypes have dark, destructive features, and so does the Double. Since the Double can facilitate a tendency toward homosexual expression, that expression “may be rejected by the ego and fall into the Shadow personality…due to the similarity of Double and Shadow in relation to the ego; each is a source deeper than the conscious personality.” Another dark aspect of the Double is that of the “competitor,” who works against the hero’s success: “Whereas the Partner strives to enhance the ego, the Competitor desires to supplant it.” In the Iliad, Hector is an example of the Competitor: “Just as Achilles and Patroklos are bound together in love and guidance, so Achilles and Hector are united in hatred and vengeance.” The Competitor presents a challenge to overcome; while fixation on the Competitor could lead to what might be called a Competitor complex.